When I go on holiday I always take my laptop. What kind of geek wouldn’t? Wireless internet access is widespread in airports around the world, and you can even get (patchy) wireless internet while you fly. Most hotel chains also offer either Ethernet or wireless internet in your hotel room, so when you arrive you can still get your fix of constant news and email.

The problem is most beaches don’t have any wireless internet access. Now why would this matter you may ask? Well, I spend a lot of my time indoors, which means that after several months of all-day work and long nights browsing and gaming I look like a ghost. Whether you like it or not, everyone requires some rays.

So, before you book your next trip, plan to travel to a beach where you can get online wirelessly.

1. Clearwater Beach, FL: This popular Floridian beach boasts great WiFi coverage from multiple suppliers. So between relaxing in the sun and swimming in the crystal clear Gulf waters you can browse the web, email friends or even do some work.

2. Brighton Beach, UK: This lively seaside resort has been a firm favourite with dance music fans from all over the UK for many years. Brighton is famous for it’s crazy nightlife, which starts early and finishes late. Brighton also has a great selection of boutique shops and when the weather is nice, the beach is packed with sunworshippers. The beach is also blanketed with WiFi, allowing you to email photos from the night before. You should have no problem finding free wireless internet access once off the beach, there are lots of open hotspots throughout the resort.

3. Patong Beach, Thailand: Patong is a beach in Phuket that is popular destination with the backpacking jet-set who travel to Thailand for the year round sun, vibrant culture and delectable food. Now you’ve got another reason to come here; the ability to relax on the beach while browsing your favourite websites.

4. Sunset State Beach, CA: Looking for a bit more action instead of just baking in the sun? Then Sunset State Beach is for you. It has a huge range of activities available from fishing and horse riding to hiking and surfing. What’s more, you can get wireless internet access to keep in touch with your friends and family.

5. Hermosa Beach, CA: Hermosa is a happening beach with some classic Californian surfing mixed with a hip laid back atmosphere. The Hermosa area is packed full with restaurants, especially around the Pier Avenue area. On top of this there is plenty of accommodation at affordable prices. You can roam the streets and the beachfront connected wirelessly to the web via 802.11g, accessible through AT&T and iPass.

6. Cannes, France: This upmarket destination on the southern French coast, famed for the annual film festival, has 3 beaches that offer wireless internet action as well as typical beach activities and services. Plage L’evasion, Plage L’ondine and Plage Royale are all covered by at least 1 wireless provider. If you are feeling lazy, you could theoretically order your mozzarella and vine tomato salad online and arrange delivery to your sun bed!

7. Naples, Italy: The Italian beach of Stabilimento Balneare Bagno Elena in Naples has a long a illustrious history. Its long golden sands have attracted hundreds of thousands of tourists over the years and now they have another reason to travel, local authorities have blanketed the beach in a wireless network. Now you can bask in the sun and soak up some microwaves.

8. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Famed for a cosmopolitan, fast-paced lifestyle, Buenos Aires known as the southern hemisphere’s Paris. If you are heading off to visit the Argentinian capital soon make sure to fit in some time on one of the many beaches lining the city shores, several of which have free and open WiFi internet access. That’s if you can bring yourself to lift a laptop after all the partying!

9. Waikiki Beach, Hawaii: If you are planning a long haul trip, then Hawaii might should have crossed your mind. If the white sands, clear warm water, year round sunshine and all-pervading beach lifestyle doesn’t whet your appetite then WiFi access on Waikiki Beach should. I’m not sure if I could think of a better location to do a spot of emailing!

10. Lake Ontario, Canada: It might not have the sizzling temperatures of other beaches on this list but it does have a wireless network dating back to 2003. It also has fantastic fishing, sailing, cycling, hiking and plenty more to keep you active when you get bored surfing the net. If you visit in the winter, browsing the internet and building up your bookmarks might be the only thing you can do!

Waikiki Beach is pretty much the worst beach on Oahu. I would vote for Lani Kai (on the Windward side of Oahu as being the best!

David on
January 18, 2007 2:22 pm

I love a sand filled laptop.

Alex on
January 18, 2007 2:34 pm

There are indeed some beaches south of the city of Buenos Aires but they are pathetic.
I wouldn’t even call them beaches. If you want real beaches in that part of the world, go to the South of Brazil or Uruguay. Now, those are real beautiful beaches.

Dean on
January 18, 2007 2:36 pm

Again, which are free? Oakland airport is a pay as you go. I’m at a public library, which is free day and night-the only wifi in town!

que pasta? on
January 18, 2007 2:36 pm

Lake Ontario is the size of a sea with thousands of little towns. Can you be more specific.

What kind of self respecting geek wants to have the office be able to reach them… My god man I get enough calls from idiots while Im at work. When I’m on vacation I dont want my phone to work.

Nathan on
January 18, 2007 3:04 pm

Cheers to Alex. I just got back from my winter break in Punta del Este, Uruguay. Wonderful wonderful wonderful beaches. Uruguay is nearly all coast and beaches. Punta del Este is probably the only place with WiFi.

I agree with alf, not including a single Australian beach is insane. Whitehaven beach in Queensland is the most amazing beach I’ve ever seen, look it up on Flickr. Also Fraser Island which is the largest sand island in the world is incredible and then there are all the Sydney beaches!! I personally think the top 10 should include at least 3 Aus beaches, one from NSW one from QLD and one from WA (cable beach?)

haha that cracks me up – I live in Brighton england and the idea of it standing next to these other places is laughable. The “resort” is a stretch of beach of this party tired town – Great place to live, excellent place to party… nice beach? Not compared to the others – If you live internationally and your thinking about visiting, unless your in your early twenties, go somewhere hot 😛

Hey, Canadianbrian. Brighton beach might not be your cup of tea (there’s a reason we have piers), but this is about WiFi enabled beaches. Betcha we’re the one of the top 10 best WiFi enabled beaches, if only because we are 100% free!

[…] Geek About » Top 10 beaches with WiFi internet access – before you book your next trip, plan to travel to a beach where you can get online wirelessly. Neat. I didn’t know Clearwater beach was wifi-enabled […]

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Nice resource. Hermosa Beach has half the city covered (the west/beach side) and the city council is arguing over whether to expand to the other half (the east side), basically if you have a clear view of the fire department logo design you should be able to receive a signal.

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[…] When you are self-employed, there is no vacation time to save up, and there is no one to cover for you when you’re away. For many that mean giving up on vacations altogether, and this is what I have been doing for awhile. After a couple years of this, however, I am starting to face a mutiny from my family. They are sick of spending their vacations at home every season, claiming that I am ignoring one of the greatest benefits of my job as a freelancer – the flexibility to work wherever the heck I choose. I decided to take this as a challenge to research the very best places I can take my family on a vacation which will also have the facilities I really need to get my work done, keep the kids busy, and have nearby fun for the many breaks I will take to make it a fun vacation for everyone (including me). In my research I have found the following vacation resorts and destinations that look like they will provide the best chance to make us all happy while I manage to keep my business afloat. (1) Meadowmere Resort in Maine The first location that seems like it will meet my needs is the Meadowmere Resort in Maine (www.meadowmere.com). They have a number of different room sizes, including a Family Suite, with a tv in a separate room. This would let me isolate myself a bit or at least send the kids to the other room if the TV is becoming too distracting. This resort also has a free business center, and a library area; two places I will likely find it comfortable and peaceful to work. The kicker though is the free wireless network throughout much of the resort, including the suite. They have a dataport in the room as well if you want to be directly connected. ut being able to move around the suite freely, without getting tangled in cable, is a nice plus. Meadownmere Resort’s rates are very attractive in their off season there is a nearby Summer Theater’s Children’s Camp. This half day program for young kids (full day for older kids) could provide some excellent time to relax with my wife on some days or get focused work done so I can spend quality family time later in the day when they get back. The camp then has the kids do a show at the end of the week which could provide some really fun memories. (2) Valero Beach Resort If you are looking to travel out of the country, one real up and coming travel destination is the Dominican Republic. This is a destination that has been popular for some time with travelers from other areas of the world, but is just starting to catch on more with North Americans. One resort I was researching that seems like a nice place for working travel is the Valero Beach Resort (http://www.velerobeach.com/). At first this resort seemed adequate, but not wonderful. It does have a free business center and it has DSL in many rooms. It also has a selection of suites available which like I wrote before I like because you can make your own little office away from people running around. The rates are also reasonable. The thing that I liked the most however was something I learned from the site Geek About (http://www.geekabout.com/2007-01-18-78/top-10-beaches-with-wifi-internet%20-access.html) In one of the comments, someone mentioned that Kite beach in Cabarete has wireless internet access on the beach. Well, Velero resort is also in Cabarete, and lounging on the beach with my laptop seems like a lot of fun. I’d be a little worried about sand, salt and theft but it might be worth the risk. If you want to learn more about travel experiences in the Dominican Republic, I found a nice personal experience article by some Canadian travelers at http://www.debbiesdominicantravel.com/expect.html (3) Mountain Home Lodge in Washington I’ve been concentrating on family travel, since that is what I would need, but did see an excellent location for just you and your significant other. Mountain Home Lodge in Washington (http://www.mthome.com/). The resort has rooms and suites in the main building, but also has beautiful individual mountain cabins and yes, all the cabins have wireless access too. The resort is very isolated, especially in the winter when travelers are often brought up on snow mobiles. This isolation, the private cabins and the wireless internet in the rooms I think combine into a very nice working travel spot. Below You will Find 150 More Family Resorts That Are Great For Freelancers & Self-Employed Parents Who Want to Vacation with Their Kids But Still Get Some Work Done. Most of These All-Inclusive Family Resorts Have Kids Clubs in Which Your Child can enjoy supervised and fun activities while you and your spouse can have fun or get work done. Take a look below and enjoy! Have you traveled to a resort or other vacation spot that was particularly good for working and having fun with the family? Let everyone know your experience in the comments. […]

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